Coffee Break French – Season 3

Oui, c’est vrai! Nous sommes de retour! Coffee Break French is returning for a third season starting next Monday, 18th October. Season 3 will consist of 40 lessons and will give you the opportunity to develop your knowledge of the French language further, increasing your range of expression and building your confidence in a variety of grammatical constructions.

In this season we’ll be featuring three new characters who all happen to be learning French in a language school in Nice on the Côte d’Azur. There’s Katie, the American student who is currently spending a year travelling, working and learning in different European countries; Veronica is a forty-something Australian entrepreneur who is taking advantage of an extended business trip to the south of France to improve her language skills; and Alf, a retired teacher from the Home Counties. As part of their weekly homework, our three characters have to keep a diary of their time spent in France, so over the next forty lessons you’ll be following their adventures in Nice and the surrounding area. In each episode you’ll listen to a native speaker read Katie, Veronica or Alf’s diary entry (which, of course, has been corrected by Mme Soulabaille, their teacher!) and we’ll talk about one or two of the language points covered in the passages.

As usual, we’ll be providing free versions of the lessons, offering you listening practice in the language, and we’ll help you to understand the text with explanations of the language points covered. We’ll also be providing the premium version of the lessons: in the members’ podcast for each lesson we’ll give a full analysis of the text, going through each phrase and explaining any grammar points or difficult vocabulary used. Members will, of course, have access to a full transcript of the text and accompanying language notes.

We’re really excited about the new season of Coffee Break French and we’re sure you’ll enjoy deepening your knowledge of the language with Katie, Alf and Veronica, and hundreds of thousands of Coffee Break French listeners around the world.

While you’re waiting for Season 3 of Coffee Break French you may be interested in reviewing what you’ve learned until now. We’ve just released the Platinum version of Coffee Break French level 2 which features a series of review exercises to help you consolidate what you covered in lessons 41-80. It’s the perfect time for some review before getting started on the new materials, so if you’re interested, visit radiolingua.com/cbfplatinum to purchase the platinum upgrade or the full course if you’re not yet a member.

The first lesson in our new season will be available on the evening of Monday 18th October. À très bientôt alors!

That’s really exciting! Will you also offer enhanced podcasts for members so that we can read the most important phrases while listening? The combination of audio and visual language learning seems to be most effective to me.

So far we’ve decided not to offer the enhanced podcast versions of shows because they take some time to prepare and at this stage when we’re focusing on much more developed language rather than individual words and phrases it makes sense. However, on the members’ version we are including the whole text in the ‘lyrics’ tab, so this means you can read the texts on your device as you listen. We’re also experimenting with the epub options on iPodTouch/iPhone/iPad.

I bought an ipod nano in 2008 and I can watch the flash cards of CBF, but I think my ipod nano generation is not able to show the whole text in the lyrics tab because there simply isn’t one. I think it’s not fair to concentrate mainly on the latest devices and I simply cannot afford an iPhone or iPad.

Chris, I was under the impression that clicking on the central button of the iPod while the track was playing toggled through the artwork and lyrics tabs, even on older iPods. I’m going to look into this further. I’m sure you’ll understand that it’s important for us to continually look at new technologies and try to look at possibilities of incorporating new systems and ideas into our products and offerings.

honestly, I have no idea why it does not work. It only shows the fast-forward/rewind and if I press the middle buttom again, there is the possibility to evaluate the podcast/music. No lyrics at all although there are shown in itunes-information. It is really a pity as I like reading the text while listening to it. Somehow it should work – is there anybody who can help me, please?

Thanks, Jim. We’re glad that you found the members’ version useful. We feel that the ‘free’ version gives a flavour of the text, but if you really want to get the line-by-line analysis then the members version is perfect.

As I’ve mentioned in a reply above, the season 3 package does not include the ‘flashcards’ / enhanced podcast option. The reason for this is that we’re at a much more developed stage of the language and we feel that providing the full text in the lyrics tab (tap the screen of your iPodTouch/iPhone/iPad while it’s playing) this will help you follow the text as you listen. Please note that this is available only in the members’ version. If listeners are particularly keen to have ‘flashcards’ then we may consider adding this at a later date.

Hi Mark etal- I’m confused. What exactly should I subscribe to and pay for in order to begin receiving Level 3/ Leesons 81 +? Moreover, how do I obtain all the extras like the “consolidation” exercises you reference above? Do I upgrade – from whatever I have now? Sorry, but I am confused by all the options, precious metal references, and absence of an obvious, one-click way to get it all! Thanks, Peter K. Orinda, CA

Hi Peter. I’ve double checked our members’ system and see that you’ve upgraded to the platinum version of Level 2 and have purchased Level 3. I hope that this means you’ve found the links and you’ve been able to access the content. Let us know if you need any more help – best to contact us through our support links: http://radiolingua.com/support/contact-us/

I’ve started on your lessions. I love them and is at episode 54 now. Just wondering about one thing; do we have to purchase the podcasts from number 81 or up? I can’t seem to find any episodes between 80 and 300 something?